Reviews

My heart is ripped into shreds, I absolutely love this book.

This is the best thing that has ever come out of the dark academia genre, not only is it immensely atmospheric, it also talks about race, colonialism, imperialism, intersection of feminism and race, how for years POC's culture, language, identity etc. have been taken by white people and used to their advantage, yet still looked down upon and seen as less.

This book is beautiful and has a purpose, as well as being so relatable in so many aspects. I find the pacing to be very smart. I know some people found the descriptions of the characters' lives at Oxford and all their lessons to be overdone, but I find it to be effective in placing the reader into the story. Making them just as immersed in Babel as Robin is. Making us understand why it's so hard for Robin to let that part of his life go. They all love learning in this institution, they found family in their cohorts yet the sad truth is that Babel only welcomes them because they can use the students' "foreign-ness" to their advantage. Without the languages they know they are worthless to the eyes of all these white people in power.

Letty is a wonderful and frustratingly real depiction of white feminism. She is a sister to Victoire until it doesn't benefit her anymore. Until there is a possibility that she might lose the privilege that she has.

Ramy was my most favorite character. A person who is so sure of himself and who he is and what he wants to fight for, from his first appearance he already had my heart. Him and Robin's friendship felt so genuine and real, I adored their dynamic. Even as everything was falling apart, even if it was unspoken they knew that they had each other.

I can only hope that they're reunited in the afterlife.

All in all, this book is a new favorite and definitely reminded me of why I love reading as much as I do.

laurenstafford94's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

mostlyaudioreader's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

What a delicious fantasy read/ history lesson. Haven’t read anything like this before.

shouryak's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective tense

5.0

hquinn13's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

stephr194's review against another edition

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4.0

I think I really want to give this a 3.5 because there were a few plot issues for me - but I LOVED the concept and the ideas she explored around colonialism and how language and power are so inextricably linked. It was a very creative and moving way to critique the "knowledge" builders of our worlds and shine a light on the fact that our systems of education are tied to the dominant forces we live under that rely on inequality and violence to be maintained.

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